Review of Fanny and Alexander (1982) by Daniel K — 29 Oct 2007

I should note that this review is strictly for the 188 minute version, as I have not seen the 312 minute version. With that in mind, "Fanny and Alexander" is Ingmar Bergman's acclaimed chronicle of a well-to-do Swedish family in the early 1900s, seen often from the perspective of two children, Fanny and Alexander.

The early 1900s are brought to life with opulent, colorful sets and scenes and appropriate costumes. Stylistically this film blended two major streams. Firstly, it followed a style reminiscent of realist Ibsen-like play where we are presented with an attractive surface situation only to slowly learn of the deep problems and complex relationships of the characters beneath the surface. However, there is also a strong supernatural element to the story. From this angle, it was interesting how Bergman wove "Hamlet" into the film both with direct references to the play and with the motif of a recurring ghost.

A chief adjective used to describe this film is "accessible". I agree with this description in the sense that the film touches profoundly on themes including death, sex, hardship, child punishment, imagination, infidelity, the role of women in marriages and ghosts for a lengthy duration without becoming boring or overwhelming.

The first third of the story focuses on developing the adults and their relationships surrounding Fanny and Alexander. At first the film takes its time exploring the film's setting and then becomes increasingly engrossing as it focuses on characterizations and the film's interminably clever dialogue. The last two thirds of the film focus on the title characters, Fanny and Alexander and their touching story. All of the characters are well-developed and the performances are superb all-around from Fanny and Alexander to the adult roles. "Fanny and Alexander" is a meticulously constructed and engaging story of a Swedish family in the early 1900s.